Up to $60,000 to lure and keep top teachers in poor-performing schools

Some Jacksonville teachers applaud the incentives, some are unmoved

Duval school and community leaders unveiled details Thursday of how they’ll “transform” 36 low-performing schools by paying some teachers and principals up to $20,000 a year in incentives.

It’s unprecedented, they said, that private donors are investing up to $50 million in quality teaching for disadvantaged students over the next five years, including $15 million for teacher incentives and recruitment pay. Most school incentive plans involve much lower bonuses than the maximum Duval is promising — $60,000 in bonuses over three years.

The money is from private donors to the Quality Education for All Fund, managed by the Jacksonville PUblic Education Fund.

“Teachers have always believed in our students in this community; now it’s our turn to invest in them,” said Nina Waters, president of the Community Foundation for Northeast Florida. “This is not happening anywhere else in the country.”

Beneath the big dollar figures, important details emerged during the press conference and in a written agreement between the district and the Duval Teachers United union:

■ Most teachers slated to receive the bonuses already work at the schools. The bonuses will commit them to stay for three more years, district leaders said. Those teaching “core” subjects — math, science, reading/Language Arts — will receive $20,000; non-core teachers, such as those teaching kindergarten through 3rd grade, will receive $10,000; and other teachers, including guidance counselors or social studies teachers, will receive $2,000.

■ Newly recruited teachers of “core” subjects will be offered $17,000 bonuses to switch to those schools.

■ Though incentive bonuses require teachers to commit for three years, the amount of the bonus isn’t guaranteed for all three years. After the first year, “value added” student growth data or some other progress measure will decide how much bonus each teacher earns.

If their students’ academic growth averages 25 percent above the district, then the teacher gets a full bonus; but if student growth is 11 to 24 percent above average, the bonus is cut in half. If growth is 1 to 11 percent above average, the bonus is a quarter of the original amount.

Nikolai Vitti, superintendent of the 119,000-student district, said the bonus sizes and amounts are “lifestyle changers,” considering that a starting teacher may make in the low $30,000s while experienced ones can earn in the mid $40,000s.

Fernando McGhee, a teacher and intervention specialist at Rutledge Pearson Elementary, said he hopes he qualifies for one of the bonuses to stay at his school, but he thinks the incentives will be more important to recruit other teachers to his school.

“I love education; you don’t look at it for the dollars, you look at it for the impact you’ll have on students growing up,” he said.

“The dollars are a necessary thing, though, to keep up the future of education in our schools. ...The bonus is something tangible that you can see, something you can hold onto.”

These 36 schools include Raines, Ribault and Jackson High, and the middle and elementary schools that feed into them.

The schools struggle to keep good teachers, Vitti said. He hopes the incentives will stabilize their teaching force.

“They’re not low-performing schools because the kids can’t learn,” Vitti said, “but because too often we have gaps in their learning continuum. ... One ineffective teacher is all it takes for a student to fall back two years (in academics). Then, we’re always playing a catch-up game.”

Vitti said he is recruiting or retaining the “right” principals, too, with $20,000 incentives.

Over the next month, he estimates he will offer incentives to 154 core teachers already at the 36 schools in grade three through 10, because their student growth numbers now “far exceed” district averages. He also will approach many of the 537 teachers in other schools with above-average student growth to recruit to fill 57 core teaching positions, he said.

Those who apply will be observed in their classrooms and interview with principals, who will make the final choices for their schools, Vitti said.

How many teachers and principals will sign on is still up in the air.

Patrick Nolan, a history teacher at Sandalwood High, said he’s not likely to be tempted to leave where he’s been teaching at since 2002, even for maximum incentive pay. He feels comfortable with the community at his school, he said.

“I wouldn’t want to stop what I’m doing and go somewhere else and recreate what I’m doing,” he said. “I certainly wouldn’t do that for money.”

Besides, several teachers said, the incentive plan involves a lot of risk, for teachers and for school leaders. What happens if, after three years, test scores don’t improve, they asked?

“This is a big gamble for Vitti and the district to make,” said Chris Guerrieri, a teacher and blogger.

“I don’t see a huge downside, at least in the short term. We really do need to get our most experienced teachers to our neediest schools. ... This amount of money will see a fair amount of great teachers roll the dice. ... At best, results will be mixed unless we put in supports for kids and teachers alike and commit to keeping them there because, if we don’t, whatever gains the schools experience they will lose.”

Some people on the fund’s advisory board also brought up limitations that even better teachers can’t address, such as the high percentage of low-income students who move from school to school in a given year. McGhee at Rutledge Pearson, a B-rated school, said about 30 percent of his students leave before the school year ends.

Also, these schools lack the parent or community supports other schools enjoy, making it tougher for teachers to help students achieve.

Paula Wright, a school board member who represents communities affected by the incentives, predicted that communities and parents will respond to these incentives with their own involvement.

“This is going to say to the African American community that we recognize that there have been some inequities,” she said.

“We just have to deal with it, lay them on the table and move forward. ... We have people (donors) who didn’t see color or the side of town. ... They saw us, as one community.”

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3877 points

Ron_Jax80

Monday, April 14, 2014 @ 5:01 pm

Mad, good comments.

Not sure how it can be resolved, but it appears there is lack of mutual respect between many students. It starts out with a push, a fake hit, or bully talk. It doesn't take much to push someone into where the person being pushed to strike back. Apparently the way the system works the one starting it usually becomes the so called victim.

Judge Davis's opinions and input should be welcomed. It would be great if mutual respect was encouraged and any type of bully activity is discouraged.

Three or four months ago, bullying and discipline was front an center. There was also a lot of comments made on the forum, but then it went away like it was no longer a problem.

Some students can not keep their hands off of other students, for what ever the reason. It is a problem, which in many cases could escalate, or make it more difficult on the student that is being pushed.

cactus, your right. Vitti is soft on discipline and holding principles accountable for how many referals are written at there schools. Of course that trickles down to tremendous pressure on teachers to not write referals. Evaluations are threatened. I wish Judge Davis would visit any school. He would see NO enforcement of rules.

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3877 points

Ron_Jax80

Friday, April 11, 2014 @ 7:14 pm

given 50 million dollars within a 5 year period from private donors.

In Sept 2013 the Principal of Forrest High School was reaching out. Where were those donors then?

Some Principals were transferred in Nov-Dec of 2013

Input about discipline problems from an experienced juvenile judge appeared to be swept under the table.

The name of Forrest High School is is still in the process of being changed. It is becoming a scapegoat and reason for the change is of no ones concern and is being swept under the table.

Then the option of open enrollment was taken off the table.

Now there is the incentive pay where the merit pay doesn't really mean that much, unless some teachers start getting paid more for doing the same job they would have done anyway. Then the teachers who remain in the higher performing schools are given no extra bonus, because they are on the high end.

How is a teacher or principal judged? When the specific teachers transfer to the lower performing schools, what happens to the instructors they replace. Will the incentive be to teach to the test even more than what was done in the past?

It looked like there was a goal to improve the schools, testing and discipline in the schools, now it appears there is musical chairs and extra money thrown in for an incentive.

Will the School board still dig into the reserves? Where is the 500,000 plus coming form if Forrest is renamed. Is there accountability or a lot of cash and incentive pay floating around.

I am surprised there is not more discussion on this latest plan or readers will believe it when they actually see it in action.

Combat pay will not work if you are only guaranteeing it the first year. It is akin to the Army saying to a soldier in Afghanistan "we will pay you combat pay for being in a war zone, but only if you meet these impossible to obtain directives". It's about the demographics silly! No amount of "good teaching" will overcome the poverty and indifference these teachers will face. Not only will they face impossible odds they will also being doing it with district personnel doing a 24/7 colonoscopy on them. Until the school board faces the real facts little hope remains for real change to occur in the "under performing" schools.